 Name Adam Usprech
Position: Account Manager, RBC, Trainee in Business Banking
Employed: 1
Year
How long
have you been reading jobpostings magazine?
I’ve been reading jobpostings
pretty much since it started.
I read it to get ideas from the
articles and the various companies
that advertise in it. What
school did you attend? What
program?
I attended the University of
Guelph. I did my undergraduate
degree in Bachelor of Science,
Agriculture. Originally my major
was Animal Science but I ended
up switching over to Agriculture
Economics in Business. It was
a science degree with a business
focus. After graduating, I decided
to do an MBA. The University
of Guelph had a good MBA program
and since I already knew I liked
the school and the professors,
I decided to do my MBA there.
What year did you graduate?
I finished my undergraduate degree
in 1998 and graduated with
my MBA in Winter of 2001.
What made you decide to apply
for a job at The Royal Bank of
Canada (RBC)?
The Royal Bank has, as I see
it, a really nice brand image
and they have good opportunities
in the area I enjoy working in.
My passion was and is finance.
I really enjoy finance and operations
and the Royal Bank has both of
those opportunities tied to it,
so I figured it was a nice place
to start. Finally, I know they
usually have opportunity for
horizontal movement within the
bank.
How long had you been looking
for a job before starting with
RBC?
When I graduated in 2001, the
economy was quite weak and the
job market was consolidating,
and 9/11 sure didn’t help.
I looked for a job for roughly
2 years. Also, I had very limited
work experience.
Do you have any advice for students
looking for a job?
Be proactive and make sure you
get in front of people. Face-to-face
contact is important and while
you don’t want to be pushy,
you do want to make sure that
you get noticed. Be able to effectively
market the skills you bring to
the table. Also, following up
is very important. Don’t
just be comfortable with somebody
saying thanks, we’ll look
into it. Follow up.
Being persuasive and vigilant
in your job search with your
various opportunities is important.
A job search is a competition,
whether it’s between you
and other students or other potential
employees. You have to do whatever
you can to get your face in front
of them and to provide not just
the skill set they’re looking
for, but also the right drive.
Lastly, do your research. When
you’re researching the
company, find out whatever you
can about the interviewer or
your potential unit so you can
understand what their corporate
culture is like. Being able to
integrate well with the corporate
culture is a very dominant factor
in your daily
What was the hardest part of
finding a job after graduation?
The economy. As I mentioned,
I didn’t have a lot of
work experience, which upon reflection,
would have been a good thing
to have in my situation. It wasn’t
really an option to have work
experience. Students should focus
on getting quality summer jobs
rather than taking a job for
the money. Volunteer experience
and internships are also great
ways to gain valuable experience.
It really helps to be able to
quantify and qualify your experience.
Was your cell phone helpful
in your job search?
Yes. I was living with my parents
during my job search, so it was
helpful to have my own line.
It was also useful when I was
out and about and saw job advertisements,
because I could follow up right
away. It’s not absolutely
necessary but if it’s feasible,
it’s a decent option. |
